A fairly standard biopic -- if a very fine one, indeed -- but never the transcendent work one would have hoped from the filmmaker or his subject.
Milk (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:215
Fresh:201
Rotten:14
Average Rating:8/10
Consensus: Anchored by Sean Penn's powerhouse performance, Milk is a triumphant account of America's first openly gay man elected to public office.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language, some sexual content and brief violence.
Runtime: 2 hrs 9 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Nov 26, 2008 Limited
Box Office: $31,716,847
Synopsis: In 1977, Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to be voted into public office in America. His victory was not just a victory for gay... In 1977, Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to be voted into public office in America. His victory was not just a victory for gay rights; he forged coalitions across the political spectrum. From senior citizens to union workers, Harvey Milk changed the very nature of what it means to be a fighter for human rights and became, before his untimely death in 1978, a hero for all Americans. Sean Penn stars as Harvey Milk under the direction of Gus Van Sant in Milk, filmed on location in San Francisco from an original screenplay by Dustin Lance Black, and produced by Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen. Milk charts the last eight years of Harvey Milk’s life. While living in New York City, he turns 40. Looking for more purpose, Milk and his lover Scott Smith (James Franco) relocate to San Francisco, where they found a small business, Castro Camera, in the heart of a working-class neighborhood. With his beloved Castro neighborhood and beautiful city empowering him, Milk surprises Scott and himself by becoming an outspoken agent for change. With vitalizing support from Scott and from new friends like young activist Cleve Jones (Emile Hirsch), Milk plunges headfirst into the choppy waters of politics. Bolstering his public profile with humor, Milk’s actions speak even louder than his gift-of-gab words. When Milk is elected supervisor for the newly zoned District 5, he tries to coordinate his efforts with those of another newly elected supervisor, Dan White (Josh Brolin). But as White and Milk’s political agendas increasingly diverge, their personal destinies tragically converge. Milk’s platform was and is one of hope – a hero’s legacy that resonates in the here and now. --© Focus Features [More]
Starring: Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, Diego Luna
Starring: Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, Diego Luna, James Franco
Director: Gus Van Sant
Director: Gus Van Sant
Screenwriter: Dustin Lance Black
Producer: Dan Jinks, Bruce Cohen
Composer: Danny Elfman
Studio: Focus Features
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Release:
Mar 10, 2009
DVD Features:
- Region [unknown]
- Snap Case
- Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
- Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - English, French
- Subtitles - English (SDH), French, Spanish
Additional Release Material:
- Deleted Scenes
Featurette:
- 1. Remembering Harvey
- 2. Hollywood Comes to San Francisco
- 3. Marching for Equality
Reviews for Milk
Both triumphant and vastly disturbing, Van Sant's Milk is a penetrating portrait of an unconventional political figurehead immersed in the chaotic struggles of his defining times
You haven't seen a film this well written, directed, or acted in a very long time. Milk is a masterpiece.
Penn's performance is a marvelous act of empathy in a movie that, for all its surprisingly conventional style, measures up to its stirring subject.
Harvey Milk is remembered as a local hero in San Francisco, and Sean Penn's joyful, deeply layered portrayal in an uncommonly graceful -- albeit conventional -- new biopic by Gus Van Sant gives us a pretty good idea why.
[T]here's a luminous vivacity to Sean Penn's Harvey, a kind of glow that I've never seen in the actor before and never would have imagined he could bring to the screen...
Its insight forms eerie parallels with the ongoing movement for which San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk gave his life.
Gus Van Sant's return to mainstream filmmaking [is] one of the more fascinating political biopics in recent memory.
Milk's peerless performances and direction take on new significance in a year of political transition and expectation. Gus Van Sant's adoring biography couldn't have been delivered at a better time.
A wonderful, full bodied movie that earns its tears honestly driven by an Oscar worthy performance by Penn.
A fabulous, important and timely movie with a core performance by Sean Penn that, at the very least, will lead to an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
It's truly a film everyone can take something positive from, and a film that, for me at least, is one of the top films of the year
Even if you have no interest in the subject matter, this is a wonderfully inspiring and important motion picture that should be seen by everyone.
Sean Penn plays Milk as if he were born to the part... it's a true physical and spiritual embodiment.
A film that doesn’t quite escape the clichés of the biopic genre but still finds its own beats, thanks in large part to the piercing performances.
Milk is an agitprop fantasy about the selflessness of sainthood. If anybody but Penn was playing the saint, we'd probably feel as if we were being sold a bill of goods. Instead, he just about pulls it off. Such is the treachery of talent.
In Van Sant's hands, it's both a story for the ages, and a story for our age.
Latest News for Milk
March 09, 2009:
RT on DVD: Rachel Getting Married, Milk Lead Super Fresh New Releases
Home video enthusiasts, prepare yourself for what may be the best week ever! This week you'll have to choose between Academy Award flicks Rachel Getting Married (Best Actress... More...
February 24, 2009:
Backstage at the Oscars: My First Time
In the movie world there is no event greater, no red carpet glitzier, no awards show more meaningful, than that of the Academy Awards. While millions watch the biggest night... More...
February 01, 2009:
Slumdog's Danny Boyle Wins DGA Award
Danny Boyle takes home another win for Best Director from the Director's Guild of America -- could Oscar gold be just around the corner? See who else was nominated this year in... More...
January 27, 2009:
Milk Among GLAAD Nominees ![]()
"Milk" has been a favorite on the awards circuit this year, and its hot streak has been extended courtesy of the GLAAD Media Awards, where it will compete in the Outstanding... More...
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